In the commercial passenger transportation industry, reducing vehicle weight can increase fuel efficiency (i.e., reduce fuel consumption). For example, in the airline industry, it is estimated that a reduction of 250 pounds in airplane weight may yield a fuel cost savings of about 1 million dollars per year.
Vehicle interiors are an important aesthetic aspect of the vehicle for passenger satisfaction. The interior must be pleasing to the eye, but must also be, among other things, safe, easy to maintain, durable, and resistant to the abuse that is normally encountered during the transport of passengers.
Heretofore, vehicle interior panels have been made of composite materials. Vehicle interior panels may include, for example, window panels, ceiling panels, floor panels, overhead bins and bin doors, lavatory and galley wall structures, class divider and bulkhead panels, and the like. One such composite has a honeycomb center sheet (NOMEX or aluminum) covered on one or both sides with a skin of a woven glass filament fiber sheet impregnated with a phenolic (thermoset) resin. These composite materials range in thickness from 0.125 to 1.5 inches and may be attached directly to the vehicle frame. Woven carbon filament fiber has been used in place of the woven glass filament fiber. Trim pieces, window/door molding, overhead bins, arm rests, and the like, may be made from moldable plastic (typically a thermoplastics) that may be subsequently covered (laminated, skinned) with a decorative plastic film. Materials used in vehicle interiors include: KYDEX from Kydex LLC of Bloomsburg, Pa. (acrylic-PVC), BOLTARON from Boltaron of Newcomerstown, Ohio (PVC-acrylic), ULTEM from Sabic of Pittsfield Mass. (PEI, PEI/glass fiber).
Additionally, vehicle (aircraft) interiors must be compliant with FAR §25.853. FAR §25.853 is the US regulation (FAA) dealing with the flammability standards for compartment interiors. This standard establishes limits in the broad categories of flame-resistance, smoke density, toxic gas emission, and heat release (referred to in the industry as FSTH).
There is a need for vehicle interiors, panels, and trim pieces that have improved tensile properties (including impact resistance), lighter weight, more economical than currently used products, and compliant with FAR §25.853, and that are easy and inexpensive to manufacture.